Talk:Catcher

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TalkCatcher[edit]

I play catcher and I want people to talk and give tips here. --Pupster21 13:52, 22 September 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Sorry, but this is not the place to do that. A comment by a person who has been editing Wikipedia since October 28, 2010. (talk) 02:37, 27 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]
   You might think that editors with 8 months experience wouldn't be particularly informative, but indeed "that's not encyclopedic", nor (more to the point) even part of the business that's carried on outside the Main namespace. That particular insight is right on the money, and unsurprising in any editor committed enuf to have taken any interest in what it is that we do here.
-- (A person who looked up my date again, and turns out to have completed 12 years of editing this month,) Jerzy•t 22:51, 23 September 2015 (UTC)[reply]

I-Rod Mainly[edit]

Having seen lots of games involving the Detroit Tigers and Texas Rangers since the 1960s I have seen some very good defensive catchers: Freehan, Sundberg, Parrish, Ausmus, and I-Rod. I-Rod may be the greatest defnsive catcher of all time.

The sobriquet "tools of ignorance" belies the fact that catching requires more raw intellect than any other position on the field except perhaps pitcher. Catchers may not need to be learned, but they had better be canny at the least. Catchers need to call a good game. It's hard to see from the stands what goes on in a catcher's mind.

I have stated on the main page the ways in which a catcher can give his team an edge. Mobility is an asset to a catcher as are reflexes. While I belive much that Bill James has to say about mobility and catching, I can see clear benefits in mobility. At the least it is the difference between catching some pop foul flies and not catching them. The most mobile catchers own the foul space between the dugouts and some more, and the least mobile don't; they probably get to any passed ball or wild pitch faster. I can't describe how to better block the plate other than to try to put the ball where the collision won't be and tag the runner who is forced to miss home plate.

The throwing arm that turns base stealers into outs is huge. A caught-stealing at second might be the difference between scoring a run and not scoring a run. A team that loses a runner to a great throw to second loses not only a baserunner but also an out. But even if the catcher throws out few baserunners because few try to steal while he is at the plate keeps the double play in order.

I have seen I-Rod make lots of pick-off throws to first base. Maybe once or twice a season they get someone picked off. It looks like a high-risk play (in the event that the ball gets away from the first baseman, the baserunner goes to second or third) until you figure what it does to the baserunning game. The base runner who has just headed back to first because a pick-off throw might come from the catcher doesn't stray so far from first base. I-Rod's pickoff throws to first base are far more likely to be followed by a double play than to a pick-off. He gets no credit for double plays, but he keeps runs off the board.

If you want to make that pickoff throw to first, then you had better have an accurate arm and much faith in the first baseman; otherwise an occasional pickoff throw will end up in right field and you will have a runner on third base. If it works it slows down the opposing running game and results in oodles of double plays.

I've seen I-Rod make a putout at first base in a rundown play having gone to first base from home plate. It's not that he occasionally plays a game at first base; he had catcher's gear on that time. The rundown had to last long enough for I-Rod to go down the first base line. It was a surprise to me as a spectator see someone with catcher's gear tagging someone trying to get back to first base. Think of the surprise to the baserunner!

I-Rod is now one of the older catchers in the majors, but he remains one of the most mobile. Note his training; he runs a lot before the game. Running doesn't mess up one's knees, and it just might slow down the wear and tear of catching.--Paul from Michigan 18:45, 4 February 2007 (UTC)[reply]


J.R. Towles is not notable[edit]

Removing Axion22 (talk) 19:45, 8 August 2008 (UTC)[reply]


Question[edit]

Look at the first paragraph of section 2 (Calling the game). It says, “Each number will represent a different pitch, and then the pitcher can either agree or disagree with a shake of his or her head.” I am removing the bold words because there are no female players or catchers in MLB. You are free to contest. Also, may I have permission to remove the templates in section 5 (Defensive mentality)? It seems as if there's no discussion on it, and it has been a full year. Thanks! A comment by a person who has been editing Wikipedia since October 28, 2010. (talk) 03:18, 27 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Catcher is a position in all levels of baseball and softball, including women's and co-ed leagues. Although I think the term "his or hers" is pedantic, it is properly used in this instance.Wkharrisjr (talk) 14:46, 27 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]
I agree that the article refers to the game itself and not Major League Baseball. I also agree with the following comment that the term "his or hers" is pedantic.Orsoni (talk) 07:26, 30 June 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Injury[edit]

I removed the paragraph discussing specific injuries to Mike Methany and Buster Posey. There have been hundreds of injuries to catchers, there is no need to specifically mention these two. Wkharrisjr (talk) 13:26, 28 July 2011 (UTC)[reply]

Requirements of a catcher's position by rule?[edit]

It doesn't mention catcher's box anywhere, or clarify where he has to be. It says he can be in foul territory but that's about it. Would someone like to add the info? Dancindazed (talk) 23:17, 28 August 2011 (UTC)[reply]

I don't have a rule book, but logic implies that he must be somewhere behind the plate, or else he wouldn't be able to catch the ball. Catchers in the nineteenth century and early twentieth century, fielded their position while standing upright and further behind the batter than present day catchers, so that would imply that there wasn't any specific designated area in which they were required to play.Orsoni (talk) 05:31, 29 August 2011 (UTC)[reply]
But you're assuming there's some reason he must catch the ball. The requirement that the catcher stay in the catcher's box is important because it prevents the catcher from being an extra fielder in fair grounds. When no one is on base there are no disadvantages to moving the catcher to the outfield for instance, and letting every pitch bounce to the backstop. I guarantee you, if it didn't say it in the rules anywhere that the catcher must be in the catcher's box, it would be tried. So I contend it's important. Dancindazed (talk) 07:43, 4 September 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Therefor, I've edited in the rule and gave reference to the MLB rules. I also linked to the baseball field page for the words catcher's box, but I wasn't sure if there was a way to link directly to the catcher's box section. If someone knows how to do that, please do. Dancindazed (talk) 08:05, 4 September 2011 (UTC)[reply]
The way to do this is to use [[article title#section title|title to be used in text]]. The last paramater is optional. Feel free to experiment with it using the "preview" function until you get it the way you like it. N419BH 08:09, 4 September 2011 (UTC)[reply]
I've made this change and also moved the sentence to the "catching pitches" section. As a rule we don't introduce new information into the lead of an article, information goes in the body and is summarized in the lead. N419BH 08:17, 4 September 2011 (UTC)[reply]
OK thanks, but it seems very similar to where it says "by rule the catcher is the only player allowed in foul territory". It seems like the two pieces of information go hand in hand. Maybe some more editing on that part by someone who has a longer history with this page is in order Dancindazed (talk) 08:22, 4 September 2011 (UTC)[reply]
There's nothing stopping you from going ahead and fixing it; in fact, this is encouraged by WP:BOLD. I just stumbled across this page and the discussion since it's on my watchlist, probably from some vandalism spree that occurred months ago. I'm not any more responsible for the content of this article than anyone else. Everyone is welcome to contribute in whatever way they can. If you make a mistake don't worry there's not much you can do that hitting the UNDO button won't fix. By the way, welcome to Wikipedia! N419BH 08:29, 4 September 2011 (UTC)[reply]
Thanks for the welcome. I'll leave that part the way it is, as it looks fine (to me) so I'll leave it to someone who feels it's also misplaced. Just pointing out that it seems very similar to the piece of information about the catcher's position that was moved. The only reason I was even interested in the first edit was because I came to the page to find out if it says in the rules a catcher can't leave his position and let the balls go to the backstop and I had to find my answer elsewhere. Dancindazed (talk) 08:37, 4 September 2011 (UTC)[reply]
And then added it in here so the next guy can find it, thanks for improving the encyclopedia! I've already moved the sentence about the catcher being in foul territory out of the lead as well, it's now immediately after the catcher's box rule. So now we have a short paragraph on the rules the catcher must follow when catching pitches in that section of the article. N419BH 08:40, 4 September 2011 (UTC)[reply]

How common is this?[edit]

I find:

>In certain game situations, typically a ball batted to the shortstop or third baseman with no runners on base, the catcher may be expected to back-up first base in case the first baseman misses or mishandles a throw.

Wouldn't that be a COMMON situation for a catcher to head toward an area behind 1st base for a grounder (nobody on at time of pitch)? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 128.63.16.20 (talk) 17:51, 15 July 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Disambiguation?[edit]

In the Wikipedia article on "pitcher" there's a link to a disambiguation page with other meanings of "pitcher", including the slang meaning of the dominant role (Japanese "seme") in sexual intercourse. If only for the sake of symmetry :-), shouldn't there be a similar link at the start of this article to the corresponding meaning of "catcher", namely the receptive role (Japanese "uke") in sexual intercourse? And in that case - or in any case - shouldn't the reference to cricket at the start of this article be on a linked disambiguation page, rather than here?213.127.210.95 (talk) 13:57, 30 March 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Catchers as managers[edit]

The lead section of the article mentions catchers who moved on to become managers after their playing career. The problem arises when each new editor comes along and inserts his favorite catcher-manager to the point where the section has become unwieldy to read. While Gary Carter was a Hall of Fame catcher, his managing career was much less notable.

I propose we limit the selection to people who had standout managing careers or even reached the Hall of Fame as mangers. I would nominate Connie Mack, Steve O'Neill, Al Lopez and maybe Joe Torre or Mike Scioscia from the modern era. Another notable catcher-manager not mentioned is Paul Richards. In my opinion, when the number of inclusions exceeds four or five names, it affects the readability of the article.Orsoni (talk) 19:08, 25 November 2015 (UTC)[reply]

After one week without comments, I proceeded with the edit as per WP:BEBOLD.Orsoni (talk) 20:45, 2 December 2015 (UTC)[reply]

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"Catcher(baseball)" listed at Redirects for discussion[edit]

A discussion is taking place to address the redirect Catcher(baseball). The discussion will occur at Wikipedia:Redirects for discussion/Log/2020 August 27#Catcher(baseball) until a consensus is reached, and readers of this page are welcome to contribute to the discussion. Steel1943 (talk) 16:52, 27 August 2020 (UTC)[reply]

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